


Problems in Playgroup

by Ellie226



Series: The Community [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: Abuse, Age Play, Daddy Kink, Discipline, Domestic Violence, F/F, F/M, M/M, Spanking
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-07-25
Updated: 2013-07-25
Packaged: 2017-12-21 07:46:16
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,786
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/897729
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ellie226/pseuds/Ellie226
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Frankie goes to her first playgroup with her papa and meets the other people in their small community.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Problems in Playgroup

**Author's Note:**

> Warnings for some ethically nebulous punishment in this story. The story arc involving the punishment will resolve in the next several stories.

I was very careful on Thursday and Friday. I didn’t want to get into any trouble with Papa before Saturday. On Friday night, Papa even commented on how good I was being, pulling me close to him and praising me before offering to let me stay up an extra hour to watch TV.

Bedtime is normally pretty strictly monitored, and any shift is because I’m getting sent to bed earlier, or because there is something very unusual and special. And unusual and special almost always meant that there were other people involved. 

I liked when Papa noticed that I was trying. I wasn’t like some of the other littles I’d met; being good didn’t come naturally to me at all, and it seemed like I spent an awful lot of time arguing with Papa over who got to make decisions. I mostly trusted him, but sometimes, he’d decide something, and he clearly didn’t know what he was doing. That was hard.

Happily cuddled up against him, we spent extra time watching a rerun of the Walking Dead. I hadn’t realized how used to bedtime my body was, and I was very happy that Papa had made me brush my teeth and putting on my pajamas before we started watching TV. I was tired.

As he tucked me in, Mac smiled and reminded, “Tomorrow, we’re going to that playgroup.”

“Where?” I asked, yawning hugely and allowing myself to be pulled up tightly against him when he climbed into bed next to me.

“I think it’s at Lucy’s house, but her mama mentioned something about the park if it’s nice out,” he told me. “That would be fun, huh?”

We’d driven past the park, and we’d walked by it, but it felt weird still. There was just a playground, with equipment that was my size, and there were other littles playing on it. Nobody had to be discreet here, and I hadn’t gotten used to it.

“Close your eyes,” he whispered, turning off the lights. “You can worry about it tomorrow,” he added.

He knew me. I did worry about it the next day. I suppose keeping me up had the benefit of making me too tired to lay awake thinking about it, but from the moment I realized it was Saturday, I kept thinking about the stupid playgroup.

I didn’t want to go. I didn’t like other people. I liked crowds just fine, but that was because those were people that you didn’t have to talk to.

Papa was prepared for that, and I woke up to the smell of bacon. He usually woke up before me, unless I had insomnia, but him making breakfast was unusual. I was torn between being happy about bacon and wanting to be cranky about going to stupid playgroup.

My thoughts about all of this were interrupted by Papa coming through the door, breakfast on a tray. I smiled wryly at him, “You really want me to not be upset about today.”

“Maybe,” he allowed, setting the tray down. “I made you coffee though.”

He hadn’t just made coffee. There was french toast and bacon, and he’d even heated up the syrup. I wanted to enjoy breakfast, so I allowed him to distract me with food. Once breakfast was done, I had to start thinking about it again.

“I don’t want to,” I told him, relieved when he pulled me over for cuddles rather than lecturing me on how much he didn’t want to hear “I don’t want.” 

He hugged me, playing with one of my braids as he explained, “I’m going to be there the entire time, Frankie. I promise. We’ll go next door, and we’ll be there for about two hours. You’ll play with some of the other little guys, and then we’ll come home before we go in to Atlanta. I know you’re nervous, but it’s just two hours.”

I nodded unhappily, and I didn’t object when he gently nudged me out of bed and toward the bathroom. I dragged my feet through my shower, finally sitting down on the bottom of the bathtub and watching water swirl down the drain. 

Papa left me in there for a while. The perpetual water heater was probably one of my favorite things about this house, and I made good use of it. But finally, he came to pull me out, turning off the water and handing me a towel.

“Dry off, sweetheart. We need to leave in about 30 minutes.”

I knew what that meant. Papa was serious about getting places on time, and he’d broken me of a bad habit of always being late. We left when Papa said we were leaving, and if I wasn’t ready, then I just went as I was. I’d only tested it once, and I’d found myself marched out the door with wet hair and no makeup. That wasn’t so bad, but he’d been very clear that I would find myself thrown into whatever clothing Papa had at hand, and that included pajamas, if I wasn’t dressed. 

I hurriedly readied myself. If I was going to spend time with new people, then I was going to  
wear what I wanted, and do my makeup how I wanted. Papa had definite preferences, but aside from occasionally saying that he liked something specifically, I picked out my clothes and decided how I wanted to look. 

We were going into the city afterward, so I wanted to be comfortable. I went through half a dozen outfits before finally settling on what I wanted, and even then, it was just because Papa reminded me that it was almost time to go.

“Five minutes, Frankie,” he told me, looking up from the chair where he was reading a book. “You look pretty; why don’t you wear that?”

I wasn’t sure that I liked what I was wearing, but I liked when Papa liked what I was wearing, so I figured that was good enough. After putting on some perfume and lipstick, I threw on some jewelry and went to stand in front of him.

“I’m ready,” I announced.

He smiled, pulling me down into his lap and kissing me, “Two minutes to spare,” he praised. “Good girl.”

I grinned at that, kissing him back. I wanted to tell him that we should spend our morning here instead, but I knew he would disagree. So finally, after we’d spent the remaining two minutes kissing, I forced myself up.

“It’s time,” I told him, holding out my hand. I was going to be brave. Papa was coming with me, and everything was going to be okay.

The houses were closer together than most of the suburban homes I’d seen. Papa had said that was intentional; they wanted families to use shared outdoor space in order to build a sense of community. In practical terms, it meant that walking to Lucy’s house took about 30 seconds.

Lucy’s mama was friendly, and today was no exception. As soon as she opened the door, she smiled widely at me, pulling me into a hug, “Well, hello, Ms. Frankie,” she greeted. “Did you come over to play?”

“Yes ma’am,” I replied quietly, relieved when she let go. 

“Aunt Charlotte,” she corrected easily, quickly ushering me into the house with a warm smile at Papa. “Hi, Mac. Can I get you some coffee?”

“Please,” Papa told her, following us both into the kitchen.

“And what about you, Frankie? Would you like some juice?”

I wanted coffee, but I didn’t know whether I was allowed to ask for it. Lucy’s mama normally just laughed when I did something wrong though, so I decided to risk it.

“I’d love a coffee actually, please, if that’s alright.”

“Francesca,” Papa warned. 

It was hard knowing what the rules were everywhere. Lucy wasn’t allowed to have coffee, but did that mean I wasn’t supposed to? I knew that a lot of the other people didn’t let their little boys and girls drink coffee or wine, but I liked it.

Smiling kindly, Lucy’s mama suggested, “How about we stick to what the other kids have, hmmm, sweetpea? I don’t want to start any fights. I’ve got apple juice, orange juice, chocolate milk, or water.”

“Water please,” I told her, leaning against Mac. 

“Water it is,” she said, pulling down a plastic cup with a straw built in. She filled it with ice water before handing it over. “Careful and don’t spill, sweetheart. Most of the other kids are using bottles or sippy cups, but you’ve done pretty well with these before.”

“Thank you,” I said very quietly. 

She poured Papa a cup of coffee, and then held out her hand, “Shall we go and see what everyone else is doing?” she asked.

I grabbed for Papa’s hand as I nodded at her, “Okay.”

Papa squeezed my hand gently, smiling, “I think Frankie’s a little bit nervous about meeting so many people,” he explained.

“That’s fine, sweetheart,” she told me. “It can be a little overwhelming. We’re all set up in the playroom, and you can sit with your Papa until you’re ready to play. I know Lucy’s looking forward to seeing you.”

I allowed myself to be lead toward the playroom, which seemed like it was full of people. Sticking close to Papa, I sat down on the floor in front of him when he settled into a chair next to one of the other daddies.

“Hi, Frankie,” the man greeted me, reaching out a hand to stroke my hair. Unthinkingly, I pulled back, and I felt Papa’s hand drop onto my shoulder, where he began rubbing gently.

“Can you say hi?” he prompted.

“Hi,” I smiled shyly, pressing closer against Papa. I could tell that I was supposed to know the man, but I didn’t.

What seemed like a small herd of littles showed up then, Lucy at the front. Tugging on my hand, she ordered, “Come play.”

“Lucy,” I turned to look at Aunt Charlotte, who was shaking her head sternly, “you need to remember our discussion please.”

Sucking her lower lip in, Lucy visibly brightened and said, “Don’t be bossy.”

“Good girl. Go play.”

Watching them go back over to the other side of the room, Papa played with my hair for a few minutes, talking with the other grown ups. After a while, he pulled me up onto his lap.

Hugging me close, he whispered into my ear, “Why don’t you go and see what they’re doing, bird?”

“Not yet?” I pleaded. It was too many people. I’d told Papa I didn’t want to do this. 

“We’re just going to see Lucy’s toys,” Papa announced, making me stand up. Taking my hand, he walked over to the cluster of littles, sitting down on the floor beside Lucy and pulling me down beside him.

“Hi, Mr. Mac,” Lucy greeted sunnily. “You gonna play with us too?”

Papa smiled, “For a minute. What’re you playing with?”

“Aminals. You wanna be a horse?” she offered, handing over a plastic toy to Papa. 

“Thank you.”

I stayed with Papa as he quietly made conversation with the other kids. Lucy was really nice; we’d played together before, and she was always friendly.

After a while, Papa put down the horse, smiling at Lucy, “Thank you for sharing your toys. I think I’m going to go over and talk with your mama for a bit.”

I wanted to go with him, but I knew that Papa had been trying to get me to relax and play with everyone else. Clenching my teeth, I resolved to be brave. I liked Lucy, and I could handle playing with strangers.

Papa kissed my forehead before walking back over to the grown ups, and I tried to focus on playing. I didn’t mind the animals, but I’d rather play with My Little Ponies. Lucy’s animals were boring colors.

My focus shifted when I overheard someone say my name, and I surreptitiously glanced at Papa, wondering what was being said.

It was hard to hear. The room wasn’t that big, but people were noisy, and I really wanted to scoot myself over so I could listen. Listening to what other people thought about you could be interesting.

Papa wouldn’t like that though, and people stopped saying stuff if you went near them, so I figured it was better to stay where I was and focus on trying to hear what was being said. Head down, I feigned interest in the toys, listening closely. I was catching snippets, but nothing helpful.

Just as I was resolving to let it go and ask Papa about it later, a hand reached out and smacked me, really hard, on the shoulder.

“You’re it,” a voice shouted gleefully, racing off.

I had been unaware that we were playing tag, and that had hurt. Before I could decide what to do, Mac was next to me.

“You okay?” he asked quietly, kneeling beside me.

Before I could nod, someone started yelling, and I jumped. Grabbing a hold of Papa, I held tightly onto his arm.

“Benjamin Andrew,” a very loud voice bellowed. “Come back here this minute!”

Clinging to Papa, I mumbled, “Has it been two hours yet?”

“No, but you’re doing a really good job,” Mac reassured me. “Are you okay?”

I nodded. Ben had startled me, and it hadn’t felt good, but I was fine. Then, Mr. David reappeared, one hand gripping Ben’s upper arm. Stalking over to us, Mr. David thrust Ben in front of him.

“Apologize,” he growled.

Papa stood up, wrapping an arm around me, and Ben quietly apologized for hitting me. Then Mr. David said, “Mac, if you’d like to punish him? I’ve talked and talked about playing with everyone else, and he’s just not listening.”

Ben’s eyes had grown big at that, and I tugged on Papa, shaking my head, “No please,” I asked quietly.

“I-no, thank you, David. I think Frankie’s fine. There’s really no need.”

“I think there is,” Mr. David disagreed, not letting go of Ben. He marched the little boy over to a chair and sat down, pulling Ben between his knees.

“Papa,” I said quietly, tugging at him again. “I’m okay,” I insisted, when he looked at me. “I am. I wasn’t paying attention. I’m okay.”

“Really, David, there’s-Frankie says she’s fine,” Papa helplessly tried to intervene.

“I’ve warned you, and I’ve warned you,” Mr. David lectured, stripping Ben’s jeans down and off of him. 

I watched in horror as Mr. David took Ben’s underwear down as well, then tipped the little boy over his lap. I managed to make it through the first swat before hiding my face against Papa.

“Papa,” I moaned quietly. “I-I wanna go home. Please.”

“It’s okay,” he told me, turning me toward the door and gently moving me out of the room. “We’re fine,” he added, steering me out of the room. 

I listened as the spanking continued; Ben’s cries were awful. I could hear them until we got to the backdoor, and I found myself in the backyard.

“Papa,” I repeated, “Please? I wanna go home.”

He hugged me, and I leaned into him, my back against his chest, “It’s okay, sweetheart. I’m sorry; I didn’t know that was going to happen.”

“We guessed. Mr. David always does stuff like that,” a voice interrupted. Turning to look, I found Lucy and another little girl behind us. Smiling broadly, Lucy said, “Mama said we should play outside? She’s trying to shoo everyone out.”

The other little girl stuck her hand out, saying, “Lucy’s got big bubbles. Wan’ play with us?”

Their grins were contagious, and I couldn’t help but smile back before glancing up at Papa. 

“Go on,” Mac encouraged, settling himself down on a nearby adirondack chair. “I’ll stay here and watch.”

Hesitantly, I followed the girls to the middle of the lawn. Lucy was carrying a large container of bubbles and a pan, and the other little girl, Emily, had giant bubble wands.

I managed to relax after a while. I always had a good time with Lucy, and Emily was very funny. She did impressions of some of the grown ups, and I noticed Papa smiling, when he was pretending to not be paying attention.

Slowly, without me even noticing, the other people filtered out. One by one, it was much less overwhelming, and I found myself playing with several people without even realizing it.

Mac’s POV

Settled in the adirondack chair, I watched Frankie play. She didn’t get enough of that, playing, and I was glad that she was making friends.

Even when she was feeling, in her words, “little little,” she tended more toward reading books or wanting to watch movies. She was self conscious about running or playing sports, and she wouldn’t do pretend play with me (although I often caught her making up stories for herself, which I considered a natural offshoot of the writing).

On top of that, Frankie avoided people; she even avoided me. She’d admitted once, several months after we began dating, that there were times when she’d say she was busy because she just needed a break. We were starting to talk about moving in together, and she wanted to make sure that my feelings wouldn’t be hurt.

“It’s not that I don’t like you,” she’d explained, fingers twisting together as she stared out the window. “I just-I need more time to myself than most people.”

We’d worked it out, and I mostly understood when she needed space. It was still difficult though, navigating social settings when I tended toward finding groups, and Frankie was much happier left with a book in a comfortable chair.

Lost in thought, I didn’t notice Charlotte sitting in the chair beside me until I felt a sweating glass pressed into my hand.

“Lemonade,” she explained. “Lucy and I made it last night. She loves making lemonade, but you may want to add a little sugar. She prefers it tart.”

Taking an appreciative sip, I smiled at her, “Thank you.”

“Frankie seems to be getting along alright,” she commented, nodding toward the cluster of littles. “Emily’s a sweetheart; Lucy always likes playing with her.”

“You have to watch out for her sass though,” a man said, sitting down in a nearby chair. “I’m Matt.”

“Emily’s yours?” I asked, suddenly appreciating how overwhelming Frankie found all of this. 

Matt nodded, smiling, “Yeah, she’s all mine, and she’s just about the mouthiest kid you’ve ever met.”

“But good,” a small voice interrupted, before Matt found himself with a lapful of girl. Taking the glass from Matt’s hand, Emily took a long gulp, “and I’m hilarious. Thank you, Daddy.”

“You’re welcome, Em. Thank you for remembering your matters. Can you say hello to Frankie’s daddy, please?”

“He’s not a daddy, he’s a papa,” Emily explained, relaxing with a sigh as she leaned into Matt, who obligingly looped his arms around her waist.

“Say hello to him anyway, please,” came the amused response.

“Hi, Mr. Mac.”

“Hi, Emily,” I told her. “Are you having a good time?”

She nodded, “Uh huh,” suddenly standing up and heading back to the middle of the yard to play.

Matt grinned at that, “We’re working on excuse me,” he explained apologetically.

I waved it away, “She’s fine. Frankie seems to like her.”

“I’ve yet to meet anyone who didn’t like Emily,” Charlotte interjected loyally. After a moment, she added, “Except David, but he thinks all of ours are little heathens.”

Avoiding eye contact, I looked out at the kids playing. David and Ben hadn’t come outside, and I assumed they’d made their way home. I tried to make my voice nonchalant as I asked, “Is he normally like that?”

“Yeah,” Charlotte sighed.

Matt added, “Most of the kids are afraid of him, Emily included, although she’ll do her impression if she knows that he’s not there.”

“Michael’s terrified of him, and frankly, I don’t blame him,” another woman said. “We’re going to need to bring it up at the next meeting.”

“He has a right to discipline Ben as he likes, Sarah,” Charlotte argued. “Even if we don’t like it. Ben doesn’t seem to mind.”

The woman (who was apparently Sarah, and I felt like I should know her), shook her head, “I don’t know that Ben realizes that he can mind, first of all, and either Matt or I need to address that the next time they come in, but beyond that, it bothers the other kids. Your little one seemed more upset by the punishment than Ben hitting her in the first place,” she directed the last part of her statement to me, and I reluctantly nodded.

“Frankie’s not used to public punishments,” I explained. 

“Not something you do?” Sarah asked sympathetically.

I shook my head, “I think she’d safeword,” I explained. “It’s a hard limit. I’m not saying I’d never swat, and we’ve discussed that, but the nudity? There’s no way.”

“Nudity’s an issue?” Sarah raised an eyebrow.

Charlotte cut in, “Mac, Sarah’s our Nurse Practitioner. She works out of a practice just outside of Atlanta, but it’s kink friendly. Pretty much everyone goes to her.”

I appreciated the explanation, and I shrugged as I explained, “It’s privacy. She would be better at explaining it.”

Sarah accepted that without further comment, and the conversation drifted back to David and Ben, and how the situation was going to be handled. 

I’d known the basic breakdown of the community before I agreed to the job, but it was apparently far more complex than I’d realized. Like any gated community, there were rules, but the unusual nature of our lifestyle, not to mention that the neighborhood itself was, as Frankie had crowed in delight, like a kinky social experiment, meant that the rules were different than they were in other places.

There were the typical things about garbage cans and renovations, and people were expected to attend meetings. Although I’d assumed that the meetings would be about block parties and registering dogs, it became apparent that David and Ben were going to be the subject of future discussions, and I silently prayed that Frankie and I not find ourselves in the same boat.

“Look at poor Mac,” Charlotte laughed. “Honey, you look terrified.”

I tried to laugh it off, but she continued, “We try to not interfere, but I have to admit, Sarah’s right. You letting Frankie have wine, or Matt not really caring about Miss Emmy’s little impersonations is one thing, but the situation with Ben and David is something else entirely.”

I nod, and Charlotte’s focus shifts back to the conversation at hand. Listening, I keep one eye on Frankie. We were going to be fine.


End file.
